(12-2-2026, Vienna)
Ambassador U Min Thein of Myanmar to Austria, together with Heads of ASEAN and other embassies and permanent missions in Vienna, attended a public lecture on ASEAN by H.E. Ms. Maria Theresa Parreno Lazaro, Secretary for Foreign Affairs of the Philippines, at the Raiffeisen Forum in Vienna on the evening of 11 February 2026, and a luncheon hosted by the Ambassador of the Philippines at the Park Hyatt Hotel on 12 February 2026 in honour of the Foreign Secretary during her official visit to the Republic of Austria. The lecture was jointly organized by the Philippine Embassy and the Austrian Institute for European and Security Policy (AIES).
At the lecture event on 11 February 2026, the Foreign Secretary briefed the audience on the Philippines' priorities under its 2026 ASEAN Chairmanship, regional and international security issues, Philippine-Austria bilateral relations, the negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement between the Philippines and the European Union, and the accelerated efforts to finalize the Code of Conduct (CoC) in the South China Sea by 2026.
In her capacity as the Special Envoy of the ASEAN Chair on Myanmar, she apprised the audience of her visit to Myanmar in January 2026, during which the Special Envoy held meetings with the Acting President, the Prime Minister, and the Foreign Minister of Myanmar. She also provided updates on the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat and ASEAN’s perspectives on the general election recently held in Myanmar and underlined the importance of a calibrated assessment of post-election developments.
At the luncheon on 12 February 2026, the Ambassador of Myanmar cordially discussed the efforts of the ASEAN-Vienna Committee (AVC) in promoting ASEAN's profile in Austria, the successful completion of the Multiparty Democratic General Election in Myanmar, which achieved one of the government’s national objectives, and the plan to hold the first sessions of the respective Hluttaws (Parliaments) in the third week of March 2026, followed by the transfer of state responsibilities to the newly elected government. He also reaffirmed Myanmar's full support for the Philippines' ASEAN Chairmanship and underlined the importance of balanced and constructive engagement by the Special Envoy of the ASEAN Chair.
